Fair head.Co Antrim.23/10/06

People:Just me

Duration:4 hours

Tide:Ebbing

Weather:Dull at first then sunny.Wind picked up a bit around 11.00 am.

Bait:Spun frozen sandeel and Spinners.

Rigs:

Results:5 Pollack.One just over 7lbs ,the rest in and around the 3 to 4lbs mark.Lost an absolute stonker in the kelp.Have a 6lb rated stalking rod and it was bent full circle.Couldn't make any ground on this fish at all.Hook hold eventually gave out.

Catch and Release:: Yes/NoYes.All fish safely returned.



Report:Fairly good session even if the fish were well spread out during the morning.Disappointed at losing the biggie,but there's always another day.Fished from 7.40am to about 12.00midday,then the right to left sweep of the tide run made fishing almost impossible.Hell of a walk back to the car park though.I'm bloody shattered.

were abouts is fair's head shock. Great session there.

What kind of a rig and set up did you use if you dont mind me asking. Ive always wondered about spinning using sandeels but not sure what type of rig/trace to use.

OMG! That Walk Shocky! Hell on Earth.... HELL ON EARTH!

OMG! That Walk Shocky! Hell on Earth.... HELL ON EARTH!

OMG Drew we are going there soon :D

OMG I'm Not! :)

OMG I'm Not! :)

OMG noel is :D

He'll be dead half way DOWN the hill :shock:

He'll be dead half way DOWN the hill :shock:

he dosent know its a hike shuss :lol:

C'mon lads, don't forget to answer the question! :D

What kind of a rig and set up did you use if you dont mind me asking. Ive always wondered about spinning using sandeels but not sure what type of rig/trace to use.

It is fairly straightforward. There are various names including flying collar.

Swivel, strong line, three way swivel or boom, flourocarbon to hook to hold bait. Out of middle swivel or boom (eddystone are good) tie either a rotten bottom link to lead for short lob casting or attach link for better lead holding. I've seen booms made from wire hangars that work fine.

An even simpler option is to roll a casting lead onto the heavier line just above the knot to the swivel and final flourocarbon snood. A casting lead is in the shape of a cigar with a small gulley twisted down around it and two metal twirls on each end. If you do this, put a small bead on either end to protect the knots - the only downside is that the casting can be a bit trickier.

I know people who use a lead on the main line above a swivel and just add a 2 metre flourocarbon snood. Others will simply use one or two drilled bullet leads for casting, works well. Keep it simple as you will lose some kit in the snaggier and kelpy locations that pollack frequent.

It is ideal if you can use braid as a mainline as the sensitivity will get you down deeper and give you a better chance of contacting the bigger fish...

Irish Angler will be producing and illustrating various rigs from now (January?) on.

HTH...

i find that using the drilled bullets and 3ft - 6ft of clear mono or flurocarbon from 15lb - 30lb does the trick fine, onto a hook of around size 1/0 for medium sandeels Mustad 3261bln works well for me. i hook the eel through the eyes and pass it up the hook, over the knot and onto the snood, then bring it down till the eyes meet the knot again and pass the hook through the middle of the eel and give it a light wrap of bait elastic along the length of it that is alongside the hook leaving roughly half of the eel unwrapped beyond the hook, it also leaves the head of the eel at a slight angle to the rest of it giving it a nice spinning movement when retrieved, the elastic also aids protecting the bait whilst casting

Round-ourway ,Hi.
Fair head is the headland you can see if you stand on Ballycastle beach and look to your right.
Head out from the town,turn left over the bridge and follow that road till you come to a small village called Ballyvoy.Take the road left at Hunters pub and follow the signs for Murlough bay and Fair head.Watch the road down to the small parking area as it's steep with plenty of sharp bends.
Just walk from there towards the head(killer going back) and pick a rock.Fish seem to be caught anywhere.

Hi Burgers.
Big phil has just about summed it up,but i prefer shorter traces as they aren't so prone to tangling when cast.And i also use bigger hooks,size4/0,as i use the large Sandeels and there is the potential for some huge fish from this mark.I use 2 to 3 ounces of lead to enable a good cast and to sink the eels quickly.It's very deep in spots.

Nice fishing tom ! I'll have to get a run back up there some time . btw its a hell of a place to fish ,not one for the faint hearted or unstable .

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Nice fishing tom ! I'll have to get a run back up there some time . btw its a hell of a place to fish ,not one for the faint hearted or unstable .

paradise :shock:

must give it a shot. The next time anybody is going out give me a shout. Some great catches there

must give it a shot. The next time anybody is going out give me a shout. Some great catches there

Okay organise the lifeguards before ya go :lol:

Good session there Tommy.

If anyone who has not been here before is thinking about going - one piece of advice would be - don't go alone and make sure you let people know where you are going.

Are there any plans for a Northern Meet at this mark anytime soon???

Just get a big rope and tie yourself to it, :D :D

theres a rope down there saw it on sunday :D